Little League World Series: Connecticut advances to US title game

SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — Chad Knight said he was on edge. It never showed as he laced the biggest hit of his young life.

The Associated Press

SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — Chad Knight said he was on edge. It never showed as he laced the biggest hit of his young life.

Knight lined a run-scoring single to left field in the bottom of the seventh inning, and Westport, Conn., beat Northwest champion Sammamish, Wash., 14-13 in a wild game Friday to earn a spot in the U.S. championship game at the Little League World Series.

"I went to the plate and I was a little nervous, but then I realized it was just any other at-bat," Knight said. "I just had to go out and put the ball in play. If we didn't score, I knew Alex (Reiner) would get the next three outs and we would score in the eighth inning."

Connecticut beat Sammamish for the second time in a week to advance to play Chula Vista, Calif., on Saturday for a berth in the title game. Tijuana, Mexico, will face Tokyo for the international title. The World Series championship is Sunday.

That crushing nine-inning loss to Chula Vista on Wednesday night was quickly forgotten when Knight's ball landed safely, setting off a wild celebration near the pitcher's mound at Howard J. Lamade Stadium.

"I was really just speechless because for us to compete and battle back was just amazing," said Knight, who also hit a solo homer to cap a seven-run rally in the fifth that tied it at 13. "It was our biggest comeback all year."

The game marked the fourth time in Little League World Series history that two teams combined for 27 runs, and the 30 hits were the third-most in history.